Green As Emeralds
by purpleuchiha
Summary: After some scheming, Sakura has decided to flirt with Sasuke's older brother in order to get him to notice her! But what happens when she catches Itachi's attention instead? (Rated M for mature themes.)
1. Chapter 1

_A/N: This will be the first ever fanfic I'm posting here! Please be kind, and reviews + any advice are always greatly appreciated.  
This fic is mostly ItaSaku, although I haven't quite decided how it'll turnout yet. This is a short chapter, more of an introduction than anything, but I will be working on updating consistently.  
Disclaimer: Naruto doesn't belong to me. Enjoy!  
_

Chapter 1 - The Plan

_What a nice, peaceful day. I could just doze off right here._

And what balmy weather too! Summers so pleasantly humid were a rare occurrence in Konoha, and Sakura was enjoying herself at her favourite sweet shop in the village. She finished the last of the ice-cream in her hand and scooted down lower in her chair. The awning above the outside portion of the café provided cool shade from the harsh sun. Sakura felt more content than she had been in a while.

_Nothing could ruin this kind of relaxation, _she thought, as her eyes started to slide shut. She was drifting off slowly, before…

"Sakura, you are a damned stupid girl."

Sakura audibly groaned. _That sure did it._

She turned around, spotting her obnoxious blonde friend. Sakura growled. Only _Ino _could jolt her awake like that. Noticing her loud stomping and concentrated look, it was clear to Sakura that Ino had a mission.

She sighed. Now she was obligated to ask why she was such a "damned stupid girl." How drab.

"What's gotten into you?" Ino interjected, before she had a chance to even open her mouth.

Sakura knew how these sort of things usually went with Ino. Ino would be mad for one reason or another, she would question Sakura endlessly before finding the answer that she was looking for, and then after beating around the bush, she would _very _well tell her what was on her mind. Well, Sakura wasn't in the mood for these games now, especially not after being woken up so abruptly.

"Get to the point, Ino," she said tiredly, "what have I done wrong this time?"

The blonde huffed. "What have you done wrong?_" _she repeated, throwing her hands up. "_WHAT have you done wrong?__" _

"Yes, idiot, that's what I said. Stop being so dramatic and answer my damn question."

Ino hissed, but plopped down into the chair opposite her friend anyways. "_You__'__re _chasing after Sasuke-kun. _And _making yourself look like a total dumb-ass!" She screeched. Sakura started rubbing her temples. "You wanna know what _I _had to hear today? _Shikamaru _was talking about you outside the Hokage's office." The pink-haired girl perked up at this, now listening intently.

"He said that your flirting with Sasuke-kun is getting annoying. If even _that _lazy idiot can tell that you like him, you're being _way_ too obvious."

Sakura reddened slightly, something that did not go unnoticed by her companion. "That's_ none _of your business, pig."

"Hey, don't shoot the messenger." She threw her hands up innocently. "I'm just worried you'll screw up your chance with that Uchiha hunk!"

"Please keep your voice down," Sakura pleaded, eyes wide, but was wholly ignored and Ino continued.

"Girls need to be discrete when chasing a man! It'll turn him on _waaay _more than just blindly throwing yourself at him!" Ino drawled dramatically. "And I know how desperate you are around that Uchiha!"

"And why are you so confident about this, pig? I'm considering a serious relationship with the guy, meanwhile all you have is your one night stands."

"I'm saying this _because _of my one night stands. _I _know what guys like to hear, to feel. _I _know what'll make a man go crazy, have you ever thought about that?" The pink haired girl begrudgingly agreed that guys did find Ino irresistible when she wanted them to. She thought back to her friend's countless conquests.

"And, at this point I'm sure you'll take what you can get from Sasuke."

He _was_ quite cold towards her, and Sakura admitted she had no clue of how to do get into any kind of relationship with the man, let alone a serious one. Although she was quite sure that she and her friend had very different definitions of the word "serious".

Sakura was sure Ino had some kind of plan brewing, and so finally asked for the blonde's help. She knew that this was why Ino had come to her in the first place as her friend smiled widely.

Sakura suddenly got nervous.

"I know _exactly _what you have to do to get dear Sasuke-kun wrapped around your finger!"

* * *

"I feel stupid."

Ino scoffed. "Ridiculous. You haven't even done anything yet."

"I just… I feel stupid." The blonde placed her hand on Sakura's shoulder in a comforting manner as they walked side by side. "Where did this shy, über virgin Sakura come from?" Ino cried. "I miss the old you. You know, the Sakura that _totally_ banged the stud Hyuuga Neji? Where did _she _go?"

_Always so dramatic. _Sakura rolled her eyes. "That was a one time thing, pig. It was over a year ago, too."

"So? I would give up sleeping around if I ever had a shot with Neji-kun." _Yeah, right. _"It still happened, forehead! _Embrace _it! Let it give you confidence!" Sakura slowly started tuning out her loud friend as she started babbling about male endowment and whatnot.  
_Why did I think this would be a good idea? _She thought back to what her and Ino had spent the afternoon concocting.

The plan was simple; Sakura was to _not-so_ discretely flirt around Sasuke's older brother, Itachi-san. She was to make Sasuke so envious of his brother, that, in Ino's words, would "make Sasuke-kun take you right then and there!" After each of Itachi's anbu missions, the two would go out for a drink, apparently the perfect setting for her to make Sasuke jealous.

_Simple, right?_

Wrong. Itachi was not only in the anbu black-ops, but also a genius captain. That, along with the fact that he was 5 years older made him _very_ intimidating. Sure, he was gorgeous, but Sakura was scared she would only make a damn fool of herself. She began gnawing on her bottom lip.

So many things could go wrong! She could make herself out to be even more desperate than before, or even worse, Sasuke would see straight through her plan. _What a nightmare, _thought Sakura. _This was the worst idea we__'__ve ever had._

She combed her hands through her neat hair in an attempt to calm herself. Alongside helping her brew this plan, Ino had also done Sakura up to boost her confidence. Sakura peered down her shimmery black dress, noticing how long her legs looked in the heels her friend had forced her in. Her shorter pink hair was curled outwards slightly, and she had applied some dark makeup that made her bright green eyes pop. Sakura's dress came down mid-thigh, the sleeves long, fitting her body like a glove. She did admit she felt really good, and was grateful that Ino had convinced her to get dressed up for the occasion.

Even after getting beautified, Sakura still wasn't comfortable, and as the girls were nearing the local bar, she couldn't help feeling nervous about the situation. She focussed back on what Ino was saying to ease her nerves.

"-and _that__'__s _why it's necessary to eat oranges before sleeping with a guy!" Ino finished dramatically as Sakura started listening again. She stifled a groan. How the hell did her friend manage to go through so many topics so quickly?

She looked around, noticing how far they had walked after zoning out. It was already nearing 11 at night, after scheming for a good few hours in Ino's apartment. They were now right in front of the bar the Uchihas frequented, the dark street illuminated from the brightly lit establishment. Sakura peered in through the windows, and could just make out the brothers sitting side by side on barstools facing away from where she was looking.

Her stomach flopped. There was _no_ way she could actually go through with this. Ino saw her friend's expression quickly change to fear, and knew immediately she was having second thoughts. She slapped her on the back with a large grin.

"Alright, forehead, get on in there!"


	2. Chapter 2

_Thank you so much for the kind words for chapter 1! I love reading the reviews I've been left, and it means the world to me that even a few people enjoy my writing._

_Reviews and any advice are always appreciated._

_Again, Naruto is not mine. Enjoy!_

Chapter 2: Interruptions

He took a swig of the alcohol, appreciating the way it burned on its way down his throat. His eyes stung as they started to water profusely.

"Crying, aniki?" his younger brother smirked beside him.

Itachi resisted rolling his eyes as he wiped the wetness off his cheeks. His eyes _always_ watered when he drank liquor. Sasuke was well-aware of this, and he constantly made fun of him. His ridicule was nothing new. "I wouldn't talk, _baka_. You're as bright as a tomato."

Sasuke's face burned even redder at hearing this, and Itachi laughed (inwardly). He was an Uchiha, and therefore was very adept at hiding his emotions, as well as appearing stone-cold no matter the situation. His otouto, the _baby _of the family, was not so gifted in this domain. Sasuke's feelings did tend to show when he was angry or embarrassed, although the occasions were rare.

_The baby of the family, huh? _Itachi was sure that his mother would _not _be happy with him if she found out that her youngest son was out drinking. Underage, he might add. Mikoto-san would definitely not be impressed.

Itachi brushed it off. The times when they were both in Konoha without missions were far and few, and he valued his relationship with his younger brother. No matter how many times Sasuke got on his nerves, Itachi was set on staying close with him. He put taking care of his family above all else.

He tried not to grin as he watched Sasuke down another two shots of tequila. _Ah, yes. Family is very important. _

Sasuke choked a bit but maintained his composure. How amusing. He was getting redder than ever. Itachi could get irritated with Sasuke sometimes, but at least he wasn't obnoxious when he drank, unlike the idiot he was thinking of.

He thought of his foolish brother's teammate, Naruto. Itachi could see faint similarities between the two of them. The blonde had only been out drinking with them a couple times, in which he had always gotten completely _wasted, _and had been kicked out of the bar they were in at the time. Itachi was reminded of Naruto's er, _rosy - _who was he kidding, Naruto's face was crimson when he drank. The first time the brothers had drank with the blonde, they had considered seeking medical attention, for his bright red skin had looked unnatural and unhealthy.

Additionally, Naruto was so _annoying _when drunk, Itachi had dreaded the rare occasions that he had followed Sasuke to the bar. He would blurt out everything that would cross his mind, regardless of how unimportant or inappropriate.

How the hell had his otouto managed to land on a team with such an idiot?

He wondered if Kakashi-san was as irritated with him as he was. At least the copy-nin was respectable, thought Itachi. And that pink-haired girl didn't seem all that bad. Now just _what _was her name again…?

"_Tsk_, Sakura, what are _you _doing here?"

Itachi turned to see precisely the short kunoichi he was thinking of. In the brief time he had known her as being his brother's teammate, she had grown on him, if only a bit. Despite their lack of interaction in the past, Itachi did respect her. She was always outspoken and strong-willed, and _never_ stood for Sasuke's crap, from what he had observed.

And although Itachi was never a superficial man, he _definitely _could appreciate her looks. He wasn't keen to look far into what that meant.

Sakura had started to inch her way in between the two stools that the brothers were sitting on, effectively shoving Sasuke to one side.

"_Hey_, Sasuke-kun, funny bumping into you here, neh?" Sakura purred. Itachi could tell his brother was slightly uncomfortable the way his "hn" sounded. She started to pout at not getting a response, gave up, and quickly turned her attention to Itachi.

_Admitting defeat so easily? _That seemed unusual for someone like Sakura, but Itachi thought nothing of it.

"Did you get Sasuke too drunk to talk or something, Itachi-san?" the kunoichi complained, and he smirked slightly. _What an amusing girl._

"If my otouto is not speaking, then it is no doing of mine, Haruno-san." replied Itachi slyly. "Forgive him, he may just be intimidated by the fact that you are a woman. After all, he doesn't have much experience with your kind." Sakura giggled. This was followed by a gruff "shut up" from Sasuke, but the two took no notice.

"Oh, please call me Sakura, Itachi-san," she crooned, "after all, we have known each other for what, 4 years?" _Why is she being so bold?_ He was rather puzzled at how at ease she seemed conversing with him, seeing as how people were usually intimidated around him.

Was she… _flirting _with him? With his brother sitting right beside them? This confused him even farther. He had always viewed Sakura as merely another one of Sasuke's fangirls, but apparently not. Had she wanted to get his attention, all this time? No, that couldn't be it.

Or was she just trying to make Sasuke jealous? That was probably more likely, he conceded. He tried not to be amused by her insight, because he knew Sasuke didn't like being toyed with. He had to agree that if she was trying to get him envious, that would the most effective way for Sasuke to notice her.

She had to be smart to think of this, or maybe just lucky, because Itachi certainly knew that Sasuke could not handle jealousy well at all. If the times that their father had favoured him over his younger brother was any indication, the kunoichi would make Sasuke unable to think straight.

Well, hats off to her for taking such a sly approach, but what was he to do? Flirt with her and help her out, or refuse to be part of his brother's love life? Itachi was seriously considering just leaving and letting someone else be the victim of her plan, but Sakura was starting to intrigue him. Where the hell had this girl come from? He had never pegged her as smart, but she was a ninja after all; they had always been taught to formulate the most effective battle strategies.

He would go along with it, he decided, if only to get a reaction from his brother. Surely, that was reason enough.

"Of course, _Sa-ku-ra._" he drawled, leaning in closer. "What has brought you to a bar, alone, at this time of night?"

She started slightly at his response. He surmised that she did not expect him to follow her lead so easily, but she composed herself quickly. "I was just with my friend, Ino," she gestured over to the dance floor, where a tall blonde girl could be seen, er, grinding with someone, "and she just _begged _me to come for a drink! Although," she added, giggling, "she does seem a bit distracted."

She was funny, too? Itachi was learning a lot about his new friend tonight. Although his mind was foggy from the alcohol, he was noticing things about Sakura as they continued talking. She was probably stressed about work because of how she started wringing her wrists when he brought up her life at the hospital. He approved of how hardworking she seemed to be, but could not help being concerned when he noticed the slightly frantic look in her eyes while telling him a stories about patients. And whenever the topic of sparring came up, Sakura was adamant in telling him that just because she was a kunoichi, she was _not _to be underestimated. She _was _a disciple of Tsunade's, after all.

During their conversations, Sasuke had tried to "hn" and grunt her away, but his annoyance with the pink-haired girl was promptly ignored. He retired to quiet huffs while being disregarded. He vaguely wondered if the two had been friends before, because they certainly got along well enough. Sasuke started looking around the bar, trying to find something else to entertain him now that his brother was not longer focussing on him. The girls in the establishment were so mediocre-looking, he didn't want to put effort into talking to any of them. He sunk lower into his chair, and listened back into their conversation.

"And when I walked into the room, I swear to god, he had thrown his scrubs out the window!" Sakura was laughing, and even Itachi let out a slight chuckle.

This was too bizarre, his aniki _chuckling? _Sasuke shook his head and beckoned the bartender over. If he had to listen to the two of them for the next few hours, he at least wanted to be too damn drunk to hear them.

Talking to her felt so natural, Itachi didn't even have to try. Granted, she did start most of their conversations, but such was a feat for someone as reserved as he. He mostly let her speak, and observed her. Even while inebriated, Itachi's mind could be sharp as a whistle if he wanted it to be, and he used it to read her expression even farther.

For the past hour, they had just been talking, and Sasuke's interventions had gotten farther apart. They now tuned him out completely, and were not interrupted except for when Ino stumbled over, drunk as a skunk, to yell profusely at Sakura.

And when he asked her if she wanted to have a drink, she didn't refuse. They started to drink their troubles away, whether it be clan duties or stressful days at the hospital.

In the back of her mind, Sakura vaguely remembered the end goal of her little outing. She stopped giggling at the fact that Itachi had tears in his eyes from drinking -yes, _again-_ and turned to her left to where Sasuke was sitting beside them.

"Hey, Itachi," slurred Sakura, concentrating on phrasing her words correctly, "where did Sasuke-kun go?" She turned to look around quickly, her head buzzing, and gasped dramatically when she saw him sitting at a table with a girl. Itachi piped up hearing this, and smirked at the sight. The kunoichi was not as affected as he thought she would be, and instead asked him if his younger brother went out with girls often. He could not detect jealousy in her tone, however, just mild curiosity.

He shook his head. "No. However much my father pushes him towards marriage or even courtship, my otouto is stubborn." Itachi gave a small smile. "For a while, we even doubted his interest towards women." He stole a glance towards where Sasuke had snuck off to, and he seemed to be talking intently with the girl.

The meaning of his words were, for the most part, lost to Sakura. She was staring at his mouth, envious as to how easily he spoke, whereas she now had to focus hard on piecing her words together. "And," she licked her lips, "what about you, Itachi-san?" He turned to face her fully. "Do _you _go out with girls often?"

Her heart fluttered as he leaned in very, _very_ close to her. Dangerously close. She could smell his cologne, and the scent of pine jolted her out of her fogginess a bit. She felt very claustrophobic all of a sudden.

"Sasuke isn't watching us anymore," he murmured in her ear. "Why are you still trying to seduce me, Sakura?" Her stomach dropped as she realized she was caught, but also how oh-so smoothly her name sounded coming from between his lips. She swallowed, flushing with embarassment.

"I…uh," she mumbled out. _I have no excuse! _she thought, panicked. And the way he was leaning in _really _close was distracting her from having any rational thoughts. She almost fainted when his hand started trailing up her leg.

_Oh god. I can feel him breathing on my neck. Oh my go- Oh kami._

"What did you say, Sakura?" He simpered.

"Uh…" she swallowed again. "Who's doing the seducing now, eh?" Sakura chuckled quietly, trying hard not to breathe. He back away from her slowly, looking her straight in the eyes, slightly amused. How was she able to get herself in this compromising situation? _It__'__s that damned Ino for sure, _she thought.

She heard Itachi let out a breathy laugh. "Well, I-"

Just as he was surely about to tease her some more, a loud smash was heard from across the room, making them both sit up straight. "You idiot!" a high-pitched voice shrieked.

They saw the girl that Sasuke was sitting with storm away from their table, her shirt soaked. "Baka… He spilled his drink on her…" Sakura rushed over to see a very drunk Sasuke laying on the ground near the table, eyes shut. _How much did he drink?! _She saw Ino stumble over, and then said something in Sakura's ear about going home. Ino's eyes darted to the ground where Sasuke was, and let out an obnoxious, drunk laugh. Sakura started off to walk Ino home, but stopped short when she climbed into a cab and waved good-bye.

Down at her feet, her teammate started to rolled him over just as he started puffing deeply, asleep.

"Tsk… He never did take alcohol well," Sakura turned to see Itachi had followed her across the room, hands in his pockets, now looking down in disgust at his brother. He bent over and hoisted him up, pulling Sasuke's arm around his shoulder. Noticing Itachi's slight stumble, Sakura hurried over and put his other arm around her. The three shuffled out the bar, still unstable.

Once outside, they turned toward the Uchiha compound, a silent mutual agreement that Sasuke needed to be taken how. Her feet kept catching and she stumbled along, still carrying her teammate. The night air was chilly, and she regrettably realized she had forgotten her coat at her house. Her mind was foggy, and she was having a difficult time processing how she was in her current situation. Unable to come to a conclusion, she tried to make conversation to ease the tension. Sakura noticed Itachi was lacking stability on the other side of Sasuke as well.

"What was that saying… about the blind leading the blind?" she said hesitantly.

Itachi paused. She couldn't see his face, was he not going to respond? She desperately tried to focus on things other than that awkward moment between her and Itachi. To not think about how close he leaned in, the smell of his cologne as he was breathing down her neck…

"Hn. More like the drunk leading the drunk." He said quietly, but she could tell he was smirking. She tried to choke down a laugh as his words sunk in. "Did _The Great Anbu Captain Itachi _just tell a joke?" she slurred, now giggling profusely. Itachi scoffed, but didn't reply otherwise. She laughed even louder at how uptight he was being.

Her voice echoed down the street they had turned onto, and then eventually died out. The fresh air was a nice change from the stuffiness of the bar, and she started to breathe deeply. There was no more conversation on the walk home, and Sakura had nothing to distract her from her lingering thoughts about Itachi. She was hesitant to read into it, but she wondered just how he knew about her plan to make Sasuke jealous. _Apart from being such a talented ninja, can he read minds too? _No, that couldn't be it, he just had to be very perceptive. She was left pondering why he would even go along with it. Now, that was a whole different issue Sakura didn't even want to think about.

She peeked over at the younger Uchiha, who was now dead weight on her shoulders, feet dragging. Sakura sighed quietly. She was always left to clean up after his damn mess.

The three turned another corner, and the compound loomed up tall and proud in front of them. Itachi took Sasuke's weight off Sakura suddenly, and promptly dragged him to the front door. "Wait here," puffed Itachi so quietly that she wasn't sure if she heard him correctly. Before she could clarify, he quickly went through the door, and Sakura was left outside by herself.

She shivered, but was glad that the fuzziness of the liquor had at least begun to ebb. She leaned on a tree lining the street way, and exhaled deeply. Two, then five, then ten minutes passed. She was starting to wonder if Itachi had ditched her, when she glanced up at the Uchiha house, wondering how long it would take him to tuck precious Sasuke into bed. _Kind of pretentious, _she thought, noticing the size of the building and its upperclass decor. She was just peeking around to look at the side of the house, when the door opened and Itachi burst out.

He hurried over to her, and looked her over, his face unreadable. She was about to feel offended and get out of this damn mess, when he promptly interrupted her. "Let me walk you home," he offered.


	3. Chapter 3

_Hey everyone! I realize it's been forever- approximately 2 frickin' years since I've updated this story! And I know, I'm the worst! I had some great ideas for how I wanted this story to go, and with school and everything, I got way ahead of myself and kept pushing off writing. Like, for ages. But now, I'm back with Chapter 3 for Green as Emeralds! (I will totally put in way more effort to finish this now, because I have some ideas where I wanna go with it, and I really want to share with you guys!) As always, reviews are VERY much appreciated, and Naruto and all its characters do not belong to me! Enjoy!_

_Chapter 3 - A Strange Walk_

_"Walk me home?" _Sakura exclaimed. "Why on earth would you do that?" In her drunken state, her mind took a few seconds to process this. "Wait, do you think that _just_ because I'm a kunoichi…"

"That I think you are unable to walk yourself home? How disgraceful." Itachi replied quickly. He smirked inwardly at her quick defensiveness, and— although he couldn't immediately admit it to himself— admired her a little bit for her quick, passionate response. "I would not do you the dishonour."

Itachi really did not mean to offend her. After tucking his sloppy otouto into bed— not an easy task, given his inebriated state, and _especially _since his parents were asleep in the room just beside Sasuke's— he realized how abruptly he had abandoned Sakura out on the street. He didn't want the night to end so suddenly. And, before he knew it, he was starting back towards the front door of the Uchiha manor. _Perhaps I should go back outside and tell her goodbye_, he surmised. _I did tell her to wait, after all. _

He was not quite sure what had possessed him to ask her to wait for him. Itachi had really just blurted it out.

As he stepped out onto the street however, and saw Sakura just standing there in that—granted, _very_ revealing— black dress, he knew he needed to spend more time with her. Itachi really just wanted to be, uh, friends with her.

He knew that this was probably the only chance he would ever get to talk to her this closely again. Because he had caught her telling him such a deceitful, bold-faced lie, she probably wouldn't be too keen to hang out with him any time soon after tonight. And, all right, she was pretty drunk and he wanted to make sure she was okay, but he also wanted to take advantage of her openness in her inebriated state. She had fascinated him; and he wanted to talk to her a little longer until the inevitable happened: they would both sober up the next morning, and Sakura would be too embarrassed to ever look him in the eyes again. If he wasn't mistaken— and let's be honest, he was _never_ mistaken— she would react exactly the way he expected her to. Spending time with her, he had noticed her powerful dignity. She was _not _to be underestimated. And if she weren't drunk, she would have ditched him hours ago, refusing to spend any more time with him, seeing as he knew about her feelings about Sasuke, and her plan of action for the evening. In any case, Itachi predicted that she wouldn't want to see him, let alone speak to him, for the next few weeks at least. She was too proud; and Itachi had called her out on her devious little plan to get Sasuke jealous. From what he had seen of Sakura this evening, she would _not_ be a fan of that.

So, Itachi had done what any anbu-captain-level, analytical genius-killer-ninja would do, and offered to walk her home. That couldn't be considered _too_ devious, right? He just wanted to talk to her as much as he could before the inevitable would happen; they would sober up and, in all likelihood, never speak again. In fairness, she had came to him with her plan in the first place, Itachi reasoned. No matter what he did, it would not _nearly _be as devious as what she had attempted to do.

"Shall we?" Itachi continued, as Sakura seemed a bit stunned. Her slight animosity was justified. After all, as a woman in the ninja world, Sakura definitely did _not_ want to be thought less of; let alone not being capable of walking her own damn self home! _I'm a killer ninja, damn it! _But when she saw how him walking out of the house, she couldn't deny the twinge of relief that she felt. For a second there, she really thought he'd just ditched her. And she had to admit, Itachi really did look like her _Sasuke-kun…_

"Alright, alright…" she grumbled, trying not to show how eager she was to spend more time with him. This did not work— within the first few steps towards her apartment, energy surged through her, and Sakura was already bouncing around like a child beside Itachi.

She realized what she was doing a few seconds later, and immediately tried stopping herself. She didn't want to look like an idiot in front of some guy, damn it! _Especially _not an Uchiha—those bastards! She quickly peered over to Itachi, noticing angrily how calm and stoic he managed to look. Next to him, she felt like an idiot, but was still having troubles controlling herself. _How are all of the Uchiha so damn annoying?! Next to him, I look like a fool who can't handle her alcohol!_

_Damn it, Sak_, she thought to herself. _Handle yourself better, you idiot_. She bit her lip and forced herself to stop skipping around, and started walking at a normal pace beside her companion. This worked for a few steps; she felt she had gotten a hold of herself, until she realized how quiet it was. A little too quiet…

_Damn it, neither of us are talking! Say something, say something…_

"So… about Sasuke's arranged marriage…" she blurted out, and immediately frowned. WHY _would you say that?! _she scolded herself. Itachi twitched slightly beside her, and Sakura was mortified to see Itachi had stifled a snicker. He turned it into a quiet cough, clearly trying not to embarrass her at her sudden, inexplicable attempt at starting conversation. _Ok, relax girl, just say something else…_

"Well-" he started to respond.

"What I meant was… would you cut you hair?" she back-tracked out. _Wait, that doesn't make sense! What does his hair have to do with this?! Whatever, it's too late, just go with it. _"Like. If you had the chance. I mean, it's pretty long—wait, not too long, actually, pretty much a perfect length… it's kinda feminine though, don't you think? Hold on, I mean, not _feminine_… exactly… like Neji _totally_ has the same hair, and he only looks like a china doll a little bit… "

Silence. Sakura didn't know what else to say. Her strange, mixed-up words hung in the air until-

_Pffft. _Itachi made a strange noise. Sakura started. _Is that normal for him? _"Are you okay? I can call an ambulance or something—wait, I'm a medical-nin, hold on—"

Then, something miraculous happened. Itachi really started laughing. He clutched his sides, tears collecting at the corners of his eyes. Sakura just stared at him in shock. She couldn't believe her eyes. She had barely ever seen Itachi so much as chuckle, let alone _roar _with laughter.

And he really couldn't stop. He started to sniffle slightly. His _guffaws _echoed off the buildings. Sakura could only watch in disbelief as he continued laughing. Soon, he resided to giggling, and then just chuckling softly. By this point, they had all but stopped walking, and were now facing each other. "You—" Itachi snorted. _Snorted? _thought Sakura. "—are a piece of work."

She was mortified. Shock didn't even begin to describe the plethora of emotions flowing through her. _What the hell was that? _She was already starting to forget what she had said in the first place, no thanks to that pesky liquor still hanging on to her insides, but she could _not _forget, _never_ forget the sight of Uchiha Itachi laughing his ass off, right in front of her.

After that humiliating, albeit _hilarious_ scene, Itachi excused his behaviour, but told her he had not witnessed anything as funny as her mumbling incoherently, and simultaneously insulting Neji, in a long time. After a fair bit of awkwardness and blushing on Sakura's part, she realized she had nothing to be ashamed of, and her drunk comments were exactly icebreaker they needed to restart their conversation. During the 15-minute walk to her apartment, they talked like old friends. Nothing was off-limits— especially not making fun of Sasuke-kun, which they both seemed to enjoy, until—

"Tell me, Sakura-san. Why my brother in the first place?" Itachi asked nonchalantly.

"What? Why not?"

By this point, the alcohol had lingered a fair amount of time in her system, and Sakura was now optimally drunk, so this question really did not embarrass her as it would if she was sober. "To be fair, Sasuke has never reciprocated. Am I correct to make this assumption?"

Observant, thought Sakura. _Has he thought about this a lot? _"It's just… it's just always been like this, ok? I'm _supposed _ to like Sasuke-kun… he just, well, he just _needs _me, you know?" Sakura tried to explain. "I've always loved him."

"Perhaps he doesn't need to as much as you think. He's no child; he doesn't need to be taken care of, if that's what you're saying."

Sakura shivered; cold, but Itachi was just being honest. There was nothing malicious in the tone of his voice, or what he was trying to say. He was merely trying to help her out. Even so, Sakura did not take kindly to this comment, and instantly got defensive. "Whatever, Itachi. I doubt you'd have any idea how I feel. You Uchiha have no regard for anyone else's feelings," she huffed. "And anyways, I'm sure _you've _never been short of girls throwing themselves at you. I mean, just look at you!"

"I think you'll find you're quite mistaken," he said quizzically, but Sakura took no note. She was still trying to understand what he could mean by his previous statement. "And, anyways—"

"We're here, Sakura." She looked around, not realizing how quickly the time had gone by since they had dropped Sasuke off. They had stopped just in front of her complex, and Itachi was looking at her expectantly.

"Yeah, I guess we are." she said. "Well then. Thanks for a great night, Itachu-SAN." She stumbled forward while saying this, her mind reeling, the dizziness suddenly enveloping her.

Itachi grabbed her arm swiftly; she had almost fallen straight over. His grip was tight on her— his grasp burned her skin slightly. Her shock at being touched was short-lived; as he let go of her, her mind stopped racing and she reached for the handle of the door.

"Uh, thanks for walking me home…" she started. Itachi hn'ed gruffly, and suddenly turned on his heel and left. His strange response left a bizarre feeling in the pit of her stomach, and she marched up the stairs, into her apartment, trying not to think about it.

As she got ready for bed, she thought about her very unexpected night. Who could've known she would have spent more of the night talking to Itachi than her own teammate? Strange, she thought, strange indeed. Not to mention that utterly bizarre response from him as he dropped her off. _No goodnight kiss? _she thought to herself sarcastically. She felt a pang in her stomach, but tried not to think much of it. She stumbled into her bed, dizziness enveloping her. _What a strange night, _she thought, laying on her back. _What a strange night indeed._

That night, Sakura dreamt of Itachi. Her dream followed the same course as the previous night; she met him at the bar, conversed with him for hours, and let him walk her home. Instead of him vanishing as soon as he dropped her off, however, he stopped for a moment. He reached around her waist. How vivid of a dream— indeed, she could feel his long fingers curling around her sides, stroking the small of her back…

And he pulled her into him, very slowly, taking his time. Each inch closer felt like a lifetime— she was anticipating his every move. He paused for a moment— to take her in? to look into her eyes for a moment? — and she swears, she could even smell him. She looked up at him, into his eyes; dark, foreboding, but ultimately warm, drawing her into them completely. His breath was warm on her face, leaning in, closer and closer…

Sakura slept very well that night.


	4. Chapter 4

_Hey everyone! Once again, I am completely blown away by your kind words. I'm always so grateful to have these amazing reviews!_

_The next chapter may take a bit longer than this one to come out (I know, I busted this one out in like a week), as my exams are starting within the next few days. Also, I know this chapter is a little devoid of action, but I promise chapter 5 will be juicy as ever!_

_As always, reviews are hugely appreciated, and Naruto is not mine! Enjoy!_

Chapter 4 - The Situation

After dropping Sakura off at her apartment complex, Itachi quickly left the scene. By the end of their walk, he started to feel uncomfortable as their conversation turned towards him and his own conquests. Thankfully, they had arrived just as Sakura started to inquire about his love life, cutting her short.

That was a nightmare, to say the least. His so-called "love life" was practically a myth. Instead of having girls_ throwing themselves at him_, as Sakura had so eloquently put it, it was usually the opposite. Yes, he could admit he did consider himself conventionally attractive, and women would usually show interest in him, but Itachi found himself scaring them off unintentionally. He was smart to the point of actually making other people uncomfortable, especially women. Not only would Itachi generally not know what to say to them in conversation, but the things he said usually didn't have the intentioned reaction. Yes, Itachi was a genius anbu captain, and excellent ninja, but this could be intimidating to other people, so, many times he would find himself distancing himself from others. Itachi, for the most part, kept to himself; he had a socially awkward side, and he really didn't like admitting it.

For the most part, he surrounded himself with his family. Even Itachi's best friend, Shisui, was also his cousin. This was because people generally found the Uchiha intimidating, so they could relate to each other. Sasuke had some obvious social issues too, Itachi had noticed, but instead of keeping to himself, his otouto had the tendency to be a lot more prickly and lash outwards. This also was not very helpful to the Uchihas' more unpleasant reputation in Konoha.

Anyways, even if he did scare off women, Itachi didn't need a girlfriend to keep himself satisfied. If he was ever lonely, he would meet women in different cities during missions. For some reason, the women he met at bars, drunk or not, were always more than willing to sleep with him— no matter how off-putting he could be. Perhaps he had some added charisma away from home; or perhaps, these women really could not care less about his conversational skills, only wanting to satisfy their own needs. That _definitely_ did not require much talking.

These meaningless conquests had never been _quite _enough for Itachi, however. He was already twenty-five, and had never been in love, or had a serious girlfriend. Not that he actively thought of these things; however, almost every idiot he knew had had at least one girlfriend. Even Shisiu, the most flirty, unfaithful man ever, had proven he could hold down a relationship for the better part of a year.

Itachi pondered these things as he walked towards the Uchiha compound. He took his time; he knew that after the clock had passed four in the morning, he would be unable to sleep. He estimated, by the moon, that it was nearing four already. Itachi didn't need sleep— he was already almost fully sober, and night walks were something he treasured. He needed some time alone sometimes; away from clan duties, his missions, and the heavy expectations his family had for him.

The streets were completely deserted at this time of night. Even the owls had retired by now; the only thing awake was the wind, sweeping through the lonely streets, past Itachi. A quiet hush had fallen over Konoha. Rather than noticing the looming shadows in various alleys, or the creeping darkness, Itachi felt at peace. Not one single light was on; this was his favourite time. The only time the world was truly quiet was now, as every citizen slept soundly. Even his footsteps made no discernible noise. This was when he finally felt like he could relax.

As Itachi entered the gates of the Uchiha complex, he steered himself away from his family's home, and walked towards the pond surrounding part of the complex. He sat himself down soundlessly on the edge of the small pier positioned on the bank. His arms wrapped around his knees, and he propped his head down on them.

He stayed like this for nearly an hour, simply thinking. Concrete thoughts did not fully form in his mind; instead, Itachi pondered abstract things with no answer. Many of his nights would be spent like this, at the edge of the dock, essentially meditating instead of sleeping.

As his eyes wandered east, the first morning rays of the sun spilled over the horizon, enveloping the sky, and welcoming a new day.

* * *

The next day, Sakura woke up and went about her day. She had no headache to speak of, or any signs of her night out really, which puzzled her. Usually, her head would be pounding, and she wouldn't be physically able to move out of her bed. This morning, however, was different. She woke up in warmth and restfulness, after having an extremely peaceful sleep. _Maybe I was dreaming about something, _she thought to herself. However, she could not, for the life of her, remember what her dream was about.

_Whatever, _she thought, _I have lots to get done today. _

After all, she had an upcoming shift at the hospital that afternoon she had to prepare for, and Tsunade would certainly _not_ be pleased if Sakura wasn't focused 100%. The hospital was a huge pressure on her, but she enjoyed working in such a faced-paced, high-risk environment—probably just part of being a ninja. She also had to go to dinner with her old team— a monthly promise they had all made when they were genin, in order to keep them from drifting apart as they would be inevitably placed on separate teams as the years went by.

In all yesterday's craziness, Sakura had completely forgotten that their dinner was just the next day. In an uncharacteristic flaw in judgement on her part, she had completely let herself get dragged into Ino's crazy plans without realizing an obvious implication: that she would have to see Sasuke again if the plan failed (which, in fact, it had). And, even sooner than she was prepared for. Much, _much_ sooner. She groaned audibly as she walked around her apartment, getting ready for the day.

She was definitely _not_ looking forward to going out with her team, as she usually would be. Even though the three of them were crazy—Kakashi, Sasuke, and definitely Naruto— there was something nostalgic about them going out and eating together, almost like a family. But this time, Sakura really had no idea what to expect, especially not after all her meddling last night. Sasuke could be furious with her. He could be confused or even…

No. She refused to entertain the possibility that the plan had had a delayed reaction, and that Sasuke actually _had _gotten jealous, and only failed to realize until the next morning. She would rather take his anger any day. Sakura definitely was not a stranger to Sasuke's more negative emotions.

Or perhaps, he would be angry at her for taking Itachi away from him for most of last night. That was an all too realistic possibility, she realized with a slight sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. The brothers really only had their alone time at the bar to bond, away from the prying eyes and high expectations of their clan, and who was she to have taken that away from them? Although Itachi did not seem to have had complained…

Well, anyways, no use dwelling on it now, she supposed. She would put the matter to the back of her mind, and dive into another busy day at the hospital.

She prepared herself a quick breakfast consisting of an omelette and a small bowl of steamed rice. As she sat in her small kitchen, she ate with fervour, only now realizing how hungry she and been. After finishing her meal, Sakura grabbed an orange for the road. Glancing at the clock, she realized it was only quarter past nine. _Good, _she thought. _I have enough time to finish my errands before heading to work at one. _

After brushing her teeth, she pulled on some jeans and a simple grey t-shirt on. It was still mid-summer, but in Konoha, the climate could change in a heartbeat, and so the air had cooled enough from the day before that it warranted long pants. Shoving her wallet and keys in a small purse, she left the apartment, locking the door behind her.

* * *

As she finished some grocery shopping and other miscellaneous errands around town, Sakura had something weighing on her mind. She simply could not stop reliving the night before, and the conversations she had had with Itachi. And the more and more she thought about the things she had said, the more mortified she grew. How could she talk to not only her senior, but also the older brother of one of her teammates in the way she had? What could Itachi possibly think of her now? She really tried not to dwell on it, but the truth stood—she simply had been far too open and personal with, in reality, almost a complete stranger.

No matter how comfortable she had felt around him, Sakura was too vulnerable and frankly, embarrassing around him. She had blushed furiously every time she thought of anything questionable she had said. The fact that she was drunk was absolutely _no_ excuse for her behaviour. She wanted to be taken seriously, and that couldn't happen if she acted like a blubbering moron the moment she let loose, _especially_ in front of someone as cool and respected as Itachi.

Sakura came to the conclusion that she simply could not let Itachi see that side of her again; she would be professional and composed, if only to prove to him that she was not a vulnerable idiot, as he had obviously seen that from her last night.

She was shocked, however, at how open Itachi had been with her too. In a clear state of mind, she would have expected him to have been far more judgmental at her sensitivity; he, however, was decidedly cool, and did not seem to look down on her at all. If anything, he seemed slightly bemused, and she even thought she detected a hint of flirtiness from him, especially before leaving the bar.

_It was probably just the alcohol, _she concluded. There was simply no way someone like Itachi would be flirting with her, even for a second. Especially when he was all too aware of her feelings for Sasuke.

Her heart dropped when she remembered that Itachi had caught her in her plan to get to his younger brother too. _Damn it, Sak! This situation is horrifying!_

Well, whatever. She had to shake this off, and try not to dwell on it; it would only embarrass her more, and make her feel worse. For the next few hours, she would focus on her work, and her work alone. Sakura was determined not to let herself think about it at all; she could worry about it later.

After dropping off her things back at her apartment and picking up her scrubs and various other medical tools she needed for work, Sakura headed towards the hospital, ready to start her shift. She had wandered all over town over the past few hours— with her luck, she expected to have run into Sasuke, or even worse, Itachi himself; luckily, this had not been the case. She took a sigh of relief; she really didn't want to deal with Itachi, or go through any awkward encounter they may have. In reality, they really were not friends, not even close, and so the situation felt extremely odd for her. She would push off dealing with it until later; although she knew she would have to be seeing Sasuke that evening for their team dinner. Ah, well. She would survive, she supposed.

As she arrived at the hospital, she clocked in, greeting the secretaries at the front desk, and then changing into her scrubs in a nearby bathroom. She would just have to forget the situation, and focus on the shift. The hospital, after all, was gruelling enough to leave little else for her mind to think about.

* * *

Six hours later, a noticeably more ragged-looking Sakura emerged from the medical centre. This shift had indeed been a rough one; not only was the emergency room fuller than usual, but the cases she received were extremely tough. About midway through her shift, Tsunade had rushed into the emergency department announcing an incoming team of shinobi in critical condition after they had been attacked on a mission. Sakura barely even had time to think about the next steps she would take, let alone her personal life— she was too busy frantically trying to stop the bleeding on their injuries. She worked tirelessly until she and a few other medic-nin had ensured the shinobi had returned to stable conditions. This was more than enough to guarantee Sakura was not thinking about her own problems. There were always more important things that needed to be focused on at the hospital.

Even Tsunade had been impressed with her work today.

"Keep it up, kid." her mentor told her after the shinobi had been taken to a separate care facility. "Soon enough, you'll be ready to learn bigger and better things."

Sakura was touched. Tsunade almost never praised her openly like that, so she knew what she had done was nothing short of miraculous. She was even surprised that Tsunade had taken her on as a pupil in the first place, agreeing to teach her all she knew about medical-jutsu. After all, Tsunade was one of the legendary sannin, capable of the thousand healings jutsu. She was nothing short of a hero in Sakura's eyes.

It was now nearing seven o'clock. Now, Sakura had to go back to her apartment and quickly get ready to go to dinner. God, even on the weekends, her life just consisted of her running around in a rush.

She bolted up the stairs to her flat, not even bothering to wait for the elevator. Darting into her apartment, she threw on the first clothes she saw—consisting of a red blouse and the jeans from earlier— and grabbed her jacket and purse as she ran around the house. She pulled a hairbrush through her uncooperative strands a couple of times before giving up and just flattening her hair with her hands. Sakura ran some mascara through her eyelashes a couple of times before running out. As she locked her front door, she checked her watch.

_Cha! I still have 10 minutes before I have to be there! _With that, Sakura slowed down her pace slightly as she headed out.

As she neared the restaurant they had agreed upon— a small soba noodle place just on the edge of town, her favourite— she was puzzled. Usually, Naruto and Sasuke would make a racket she could hear from miles away— but as she entered the restaurant, the place was eerily silent. The quiet was unsettling; usually, she would _loathe_ the endless noise the boys would make with their endless bickering and whatnot. But the alternative was off-putting, and she couldn't help but feel uncomfortable.

And as she looked around the room, she saw Sasuke's silhouette… all by himself. _Just as I thought, _she concluded. _No Naruto. _Her heart dropped slightly. The thought of having to make conversation with Sasuke-kun all alone over dinner, especially after the events that had transpired only the night before, sent shivers down her spine.

Perhaps there was still a chance she could leave and wait for someone else to show up so she wouldn't have to be alone with him. _No, damn it, that doesn't work. Sasuke's probably already sensed my chakra, and is just waiting patiently for me to sit down. _Those damn talented Uchiha were such a handful sometimes.

She tried to be optimistic. _Even if Naruto doesn't end up coming, there's still a small possibility of Kakashi showing up. _Sakura sighed. Who was she kidding; the odds of Kakashi joining them for their monthly team dinner were almost zero to none, even if they did make a point to invite him every single time. Well, no time like the present. With that—and the growing feeling of dread in her gut—she pranced over to Sasuke's table and plopped down across from him.

"Hi Sasuke-kun," she greeted him, receiving only a grunt in response. He barely looked up at her; although cold, she didn't know whether to interpret this as genuine disdain or the typical Uchiha indifference. Could be either one, really— at this point, it was impossible to tell. "Where's Naruto-kun?"

"The idiot's running late," Sasuke said as he perused the menu. "He was running past me as I was walking over here, yelling something about a seance." Sakura looked at him, puzzled. He shrugged slightly as if to say, "I have no idea what he could be up to, Naruto's insane."

"Well, guess it'll just be the two of us for now," she stated, watching closely for any reaction. He only raised his eyebrow a smidgen, as if to say, "Yeah, that's obvious, idiot." Curious, Sakura expected him to have already snapped at her by now. He would have, too, if he was angry. She decided to try to push him farther.

"So, Sasuke-kun… how are you feeling after last night?" Sasuke looked up at her for a moment, then back down to the menu. "Fine."

Curiouser and curiouser. Sakura couldn't detect even a hint of anger or negative emotion in Sasuke, as she had expected. "You were pretty drunk from what I remember. Itachi and I basically had to drag you home!"  
Genuine shock registers on his face. "Wait, you were with my brother last night?"

_Finally. This is it, _she thought. Sakura waited for some kind of jealousy to register in Sasuke. _Give me your worst, Sasuke-kun!_

"Weird," he said nonchalantly. "Guess I don't really remember a lot of last night." _Weird? WEIRD!? Where the hell is jealous Sasuke? Weird is something to describe the taste of last week's ramen or Naruto's sense of humour, not me flirting with your brother! _Sakura was appalled. How could he not care at all? "Anyways, what were you thinking of order-"

"Yeah, me and Itachi spent _so_ much time together last night. I'm surprised you don't remember, because he was _all _over me." Sakura boasted. She waited in anticipation as Sasuke merely looked at her. _What the hell is wrong with him? _"Okay, that's fine, but I didn't know—"

"Yeah, and Itachi _totally_ asked me out too!" she blurted out suddenly. _Shit, shit, shit. That was too far Sak! Now, if Itachi finds out about this, I'll look like an even bigger idiot to him! Damn it!_

"Sakura."

"Yes?" she squeaked. _Oh god, oh god, oh god._

"Are you going to order or not? The waiter's been staring at us for the past three minutes straight." _What the hell? _

"Also, can you stop talking about my brother? Do you like Itachi or something?" Sakura blushed a deep red at this. "No, actually—"

"Sakura, you _like _Itachi-san?" a voice asked suddenly. In her panic, Sakura hadn't even noticed Naruto coming into the restaurant. He slid in beside her and plucked up a menu. "Oh god, Naruto, no, I—"

"That man is terrifying, I don't understand what you see in him! Plus, he shares blood with _this_ idiot!" Naruto exclaimed, slapping Sasuke on the back. At this, Sasuke made a "tsk" sound, and rolled his eyes at the insult. "Naruto," he grunted.

Sakura wanted to hide away. _This has all gone so wrong so quickly. And to make things worse, Sasuke doesn't seem any more ill-tempered than usual, so he's definitely not jealous of Itachi! _she thought desperately. Why did everything have to always go wrong for her?

"Naruto, no, you're misunderstanding—" she tried desperately to clear up the situation, but Sasuke cut her off. "Didn't you say Itachi asked you out? What's to misunderstand?"

"Wait, _the great Itachi-san_ is actually interested in you?" _Ouch. _"And you said yes?!" Sasuke and Naruto both looked at her expectantly. She didn't know how to respond. She was already in too deep— on one hand, if she backed out now, they would _both _know she was lying, and it wouldn't be long until Sasuke unravelled her entire plan. On the other hand, if she affirmed her and Itachi's _"date"_, then odds were that Sasuke would bring it up to his brother over dinner or something. But, if she remembered correctly from Tsunade's office, Itachi was on the mission roster for the week. Maybe she could test her luck and hope that Sasuke would forget about the whole situation before Itachi returned home. It was unlikely, but it was the only chance she had.

"…yup, that's right, I said yes. Any who, I think I'll be ordering the soy noodles, I heard they're delicious…" she trailed off, trying to change the subject. She peered at her teammates nervously, hoping they would get distracted and talk about something other than her fabricated dating life.

"Huh, weird. I guess I'll have to ask Itachi about it when I see him tonight. But hey, you're right, the noodles do look really good…"

Sakura sighed inwardly. _Is there even a God up there? _It looked like she was wrong after all; Itachi's mission was indeed scheduled for a later time. A feeling of deep shame washed over her. _What am I going to do now? _

Sasuke and Naruto began bickering about what to order. Thankfully, the spotlight was off her for the time being, but now she had to figure out _yet another plan _on how to fix her current situation. If Sasuke talked to Itachi about it, she was toast. Sakura was 99% sure that Itachi _already_ thought she was an idiot after last night, who knows what he'd think if he knew she was telling lies about him! And embarassing, date-y lies to boot! _Maybe I could figure out a memory-erasing jutsu_ _for the boys… no, too risky… maybe…_  
She scooted lower in her chair, trying desperately to think of solutions. As she tuned Sasuke and Naruto's voices out, she could only form one conclusion.

_I have to speak to Itachi about this. _


	5. Chapter 5

_Hi everyone! Here's chapter 5!_

_As always, I love and very much appreciate ANY and ALL reviews! Naruto does not belong to me. Enjoy!_

Chapter 5: Action!

_Fmp. _The kunai whisked through the air and landed dead centre on a target with a loud _thump. _Another came quickly after the first, replicating the initial knife's aerial path so closely that instead of sticking in the target, it bounced off the first kunai with a loud metal _pang. _

Just overhead, two knives were being thrown parallel to one another, with one curving slightly in midair with the handle ultimately getting caught in the branch of a nearby tree by the second. With this extremely high level precision, perhaps one would expect a ninja to work especially hard to achieve these kind of results. However, down below, Itachi was just lazily lobbing kunai knives around in the air, looking in awe at the spectacle of weapons above him, as if surprised that the knives had arranged themselves in this way. This was no magic, he knew—merely the result of years of intense training and missions. This sort of accuracy had been drilled in him since birth; it came as second-nature to him.

After a fairly intense training method in the woods behind the Uchiha compound— during which Itachi had practiced with his own genjutsu projections, essentially in his own mind— he was resting against the stump of a tree, tossing knives around to cool down. The sun was just setting; Itachi estimated that he had been training for a little over four hours.

His regular team was off doing who knows what— a free day, Itachi had uncharacteristically taken advantage of his freedom and had decided to spend the day alone instead of tracking down his anbu team, or another suitable shinobi to train with. The village had been quiet recently; it had been weeks since the Hokage had even so much as summoned him. He sighed quietly. Itachi had to force himself not to stress over this kind of restfulness in the village— he had to constantly remind himself to relax. This was not an easy task; he had been trained during the third ninja war, and was taught to always be on his guard, no matter the situation. Even in a time of peace, it was difficult for him to relax.

As he sat quietly, staring at the slowly shifting shadows of the various kunai stuck in the trees and wooden targets around him, he noticed a subtle change in chakra in the air. He quickly identified Sakura's chakra signature bouncing quickly towards his location, about twenty feet to his left. Itachi hadn't bothered to hide his chakra; she had to have been seeking him out specifically if she was this far away from the village.

Moments later, her pace slowed and she stalked towards where he was resting. "Itachi-san," she panted slightly, staying polite. This puzzled Itachi—he had predicted after their encounter the previous evening, she would be embarrassed and wouldn't want to speak to him. However, it seemed he had been mistaken; here she was, standing before him, clearing having sought him out. _Intriguing, _he thought. He tilted his chin up slightly, acknowledging her. "Sakura-san."

Sakura seemed flustered; she opened her mouth slightly, as if trying to speak but not being able to get the words out. Her lips shut slowly, then she cleared her throat and tried again. "Itachi-san," she said again. He merely _hnn'd _softly, encouraging her to continue. "I need to tell you something, and I'd like you to just listen and not say anything until I'm done." He nodded, agreeing to these terms.

"I, uhh…" she started weakly, but then shook her head with resolve and continued. "Ok, this is really embarrassing, so I'm sorry you have to hear this," she warned. Itachi waited silently. "I, um… may have told Sasuke you've asked me on a date."

Complete and utter silence met her words. Itachi just sat there, blinking up at her. During the quiet, Sakura's face grew redder and redder. She forced herself not to say anything more— she had learned her lesson many times over from her previous outbursts.

It seemed like she'd waited an eternity for him to answer. Finally, he began to shift. "Why?" She hesitated for a moment, even thought the answer was really not that complex, especially not for someone like Itachi to understand (she hoped).

"You know how I feel about your brother. You know I wanted to make him jealous," she began, trying to seem nonchalant. "You also know my plan, uh, failed. At dinner, I just… I went too far, and I was embarrassed."

_Went too far? _That was an understatement; Itachi felt nothing short of complete shock. He forced himself not to blush, but his face was already beginning to heat up. Itachi was quickly losing his usual composure, no thanks to the pinkette standing in front of him. And here he thought that Sakura would practically be out of his life for good; yet here she was, shaking his life—his personal life, no less— around completely. What could she possibly want out of this? He asked her just that. "What do you propose?"

"What do I propose?" she questioned, seemingly puzzled. "What do you mean by that?"

"I assume you sought me out with some kind of a plan on how to deal with this… Am I mistaken?" She flushed noticeably at this, he noticed bemusedly. "I sure do, but I don't think you'll like it," Sakura warned.

"Try me." What could she have planned this time? He swore, every time so far he had come into contact with this girl, she had surprised him time and time again with how devious she was. He had already agreed to listen to her proposal— but was it really wise to get involved further with Sakura's plans? The last time he had followed along, Itachi had gotten far too careless with her, even if she did deeply intrigue him. He had no right to interfere with his brother's friends, one who was obviously infatuated with him, and was 5 years his junior no less.

And what could she have come up with? Her last scheme was smart, however had failed miserably— she hadn't taken into account Sasuke's extreme indifference. Perhaps she wanted him to pretend to be her boyfriend in front of Sasuke. He pictured himself parading around, holding her hand, touching her waist, kissing those blushing pink cheeks—

"I was thinking you could just flirt with me while Sasuke was around," she announced, interrupting his rapidly chaining off-topic thoughts, probably for the best. He shook his head. "Why would I do that for you?"

That came out harsher than he had meant, but it was true nonetheless. Why involve himself in such a troublesome situation? However, Sakura took no notice, and continued. "Because, Itachi-san, this could be beneficial to your current situation." _My current 'situation'? _"I happen to know that the Uchiha are getting impatient for an heir. Seeing you potentially courting me could delay their advances," Sakura stated. "I hear they've been getting quite aggressive lately."

Damn it. She had hit the nail right on the head. Sasuke had probably told his team about the strict Uchiha elders effectively coming after Itachi, and he was sure he himself had brought his situation up to Sakura at the bar the other night. Seemingly, no matter the circumstance, she had managed to make everything sound good coming out of those soft lips. She had had him almost completely convinced, and this was dangerous for a such a high-level shinobi as him. He was taught to think things through fully before coming to any kind of conclusion, but as soon as the words had come out her mouth, Itachi was ready to agree.

How had she been able to be so conniving but so innocent at the same time? This was a strange juxtaposition he saw in the girl standing before him. Nonetheless, she had him convinced. However, he didn't want to give in so easily. He wanted her to work for his attention. What would Sakura think if he immediately just agreed to everything she proposed? She would think him weak and easy to manipulate, and Itachi definitely did not want that.

He stood up, and paced over to where she was standing. "You seem to have done your homework," he noted. "But I still have trouble with what you're saying. I don't know if you have me convinced."

She began to shy away from him as he neared her. Sakura's back hit a tree, but Itachi kept moving closer. He smirked inwardly as he noticed a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks. For some reason, he seemed to revel in making her nervous.

"Why? You don't think I'm attractive at all, right?" she squeaked. "Are you embarrassed of being seen with me?" She looked up at him, seeming a bit offended now. He narrowed his eyes at this, taken aback slightly. She had effectively turned the tables on him, and he would absolutely not have it.

Itachi leaned down slightly, now only inches away from her face. He slowly moved his face downwards, eye-level with her lips. Unhurriedly, he pressed his lips to her pulse point, right at the place where her jaw met her neck. Sakura sucked in a breath in shock. He moved his head back up, now looking her in the eyes.

"Does that answer your question?"

Sakura seemed speechless. She merely looked back up at him with wide eyes, biting her lip slightly. He smirked.

"Sasuke will be out at a club with Naruto tonight," Itachi drawled, still quite close to her face. "I'll pick you up at ten."

All Sakura could do was nod at this point. Itachi almost felt bad— she looked utterly shocked. He looked at her for a few more seconds, then made a few hand signs and disappeared with a puff of smoke.

Sakura dropped to her knees. _What the hell was that!? _How mortifying— she couldn't stand to be teased like this, _especially _by one of those damned Uchiha! She was sure he was just making fun of her, trying to make her feel uncomfortable. Well, damn it, he had done it! And, what was worse, was that in the moment, Sakura was immobilized. She was shocked beyond belief that _the _Itachi had a) agreed to her plan, and b) _very _obviously hit on her. Whether or not the latter was a joke or not had yet to be determined.

Much to her disbelief, in the moment, she was actually into it! Sakura would be lying if she said his simple kiss—_kiss?!— _hadn't affected her. In fact, right now, she was still trying to slow her breathing… her heart rate was still racing…even a full minute after he had transported off.

She shook her head, trying to calm herself. The skin of her neck where he had kissed her burned. It felt as though a phantom Itachi was still touching her there now. This was a mess. _You're doing this for Sasuke, remember? _she told herself. Whatever Itachi was trying to do, she had to keep focussed. If she screwed up and had some meaningless fling with Itachi now, she would screw things up for sure with Sasuke. _Sasuke is long-term, and whatever Itachi is is short-term, _she reminded herself, trying to push the encounter with Itachi out of her mind for good.

If she was going to get this flustered over a simple touch from Itachi, this entire plan would go down in flames! _Stay focussed Sak, stay focussed. _She resigned herself to not get this shaken up around him again.

After calming herself down slightly, their conversation had finally fully sunken in to her. He was going to pick her up at ten tonight, meaning she only had a few hours to get herself ready, as the sun had just now fully set.

However, being such a competitive spirit, there was no way Sakura was just going to let Itachi off the hook for that move he had pulled! She knew exactly how to get back at him for that, and she knew just the scandalous blonde who would help her pull it off…

* * *

Itachi strolled towards Sakura's apartment at about ten minutes to the hour. He had no idea what had gotten into him when they were in the woods, but he quite enjoyed teasing her. She had proved to be much more entertaining than he had previously thought, not only because of her various schemes involving him, but her reactions were always surprising. He thought that she would be embarrassed after drinking with him, yet she had sought him out. Then, he had thought her unshakeably confident, but she had been speechless when he'd kissed her…

It was rare for Itachi to be wrong about anything, and he was intrigued by it. He had thought himself adept at reading people, especially shinobi, yet apparently not. If anything, pretending to go out with Sakura would be good training in his people skills (he tried to convince himself).

And anyways, annoying Sasuke was reason enough to do almost anything.

The club that his otouto and Naruto were going to was more elegant than most of the establishments in Konoha. He himself had been experienced the dingier ones, and was pleased to say the least that he would not have to return tonight. Itachi had easily overheard the blonde idiot yelling to Sasuke that tonight they would hit on "some classier girls, dattebayo!". He shook his head. How his little brother had managed to find a friend like this was beyond him.

Anyways, Itachi wasn't complaining; if he had to carry out a scheme such as this, he would much rather go somewhere clean and elegant than trashy, that was for sure.

So, because of this, Itachi was dressed a little more elegant than usual. He wore a casual button-up with trousers. Not extremely fancy, however much better than what he usually wore—that is to say, shinobi clothing.

As he neared the entrance to her building, he felt someone watching him. He looked up to a window to see a flash of blonde hair in the glass. Puzzling, Itachi stopped below and waited quietly. It was probably Sakura's friend or something, making sure she was ready for tonight.

He sighed quietly. Maybe agreeing to this was a mistake. Even if the possibility of pissing off Sasuke was there, it could just be a waste of his time. No matter how intrigued he was by this girl…

His thoughts stopped in their tracks as Sakura appeared at the entrance of her building. Classy club or not, she was dressed in a flowing, deep red satin dress that stopped just mid-thigh. It wasn't too scandalous, as the dress had long sleeves. In his opinion, Sakura could make even a trash bag look classy. As his eyes wandered downwards, they skimmed those long, milky legs that went on for miles…

"Hi," she greeted him, a bit shyly as she noticed the way his eyes were looking her over.

"Hi," he started. "You look… amazing." Sakura looked downwards, pink tinting her cheeks slightly. "You know, nobody's watching. You don't have to pretend to flirt with me now."

"I know," Itachi said, touching her lower back. He could feel her shiver. "Shall we?" She nodded timidly. Funny, thought Itachi. There was just something so satisfying about a strong woman being affected so severely by him. He didn't want to admit it, but he thoroughly enjoyed how sensitive she was by his mere touch. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all.

As they made their way towards the club, Itachi couldn't stop thinking about what other things he could do to make her shiver.

* * *

Sakura felt very strange. They had entered the club, and to their surprise, Sasuke and Naruto weren't there yet. But for whatever reason, she didn't really feel that disappointed. In fact, she revelled in being alone with Itachi for a little while longer. After clearly making her nervous whilst picking her up, Itachi hadn't touched her or made any other sort of comments to her that would make her uncomfortable.

Somehow, being around Itachi was strangely discomforting but also intoxicating at the same time. She found herself getting tense when he'd lean a little closer, but also somehow wanting him to come even closer. It was a strange paradox, and after spending 10 minutes of unadulterated alone time with Itachi, she was exhausted and found herself anticipating Sasuke's arrival.

His motives at this point were unclear to her; if his little brother wasn't around, what was the point of complimenting her? Sakura was confused by it all, but refused to dwell on it now.

Suddenly, Itachi snaked his arm all the way around her waist. Her breath caught in her throat as he leaned down very close to her ear. "Look who just walked in," he muttered softly, his warm breath tickling her exposed neck.

She tried to be discreet as she looked over her shoulder to the door. Indeed, there stood Naruto and Sasuke, dressed for a night out. Sasuke's eyes met hers as Itachi was still touching her waist. She pretended not to see and turned her full attention back to her date's.

"Help me, Itachi," she murmured to him. "I don't know if I can do this."

Clearly sensing her unsureness, he chuckled as if she had just said something funny. "Leave it to me." He lowered his voice significantly as he said this, making her dizzy. _Damn it! Why is he so good at this?_

With a pang, she thought about all the other women Itachi seduced just like this. He probably leaned real close and whispered in their ears just like this… The thought made her feel very strange.

_I shouldn't care at all, _she reminded herself. _That's his business, and his business alone. Remember what you came for, Sak. _Sakura forced herself not to get distracted again. She pushed the thought from her mind.

Itachi gave her hip a slight pinch, bringing her back to attention. He dragged his hand all the way up her back, leaving it to rest around her small shoulders. His touch left a burning path on her skin. "Let's go say hi."

As Sakura and Itachi approached the seats that the two boys had settled into at the bar, Sasuke turned around almost violently. She noticed his eyes dart quickly to Itachi's hand placement, as well as her legs, before turning back around. _Shit, _she thought to herself. _Maybe this won't be as hard as I'd thought. _Her ego flared up at the concept of the plan actually succeeding.

"Hi boys," Sakura greeted Naruto and Sasuke. Naruto let out an enthusiastic "Hey, Sakura-chan!", whereas his raven-haired counterpart merely grunted at them. Itachi acknowledged the both of them with a quiet 'hello'.

_Not much to go on, _Sakura thought to herself. Well, she knew it wouldn't be this easy to crack him. She shared a look with Itachi.

"Funny bumping into you guys here," she began, but it seemed only Naruto was paying attention to her. Sasuke had already waved the bartender over, apparently eager to start drinking. She felt another squeeze from Itachi, perhaps signalling that she should give up trying to make small talk. Hmm… It seemed she wasn't interesting enough for Sasuke at the moment. Oh well. Sakura would just have to try harder then. She excused herself to Naruto.

"Come on, Itachi," she dropped her voice, just as he had earlier. "Let's go dance."

She lead him through the crowd, stopping at a small clearing towards the middle, but in a perfect position where Sasuke could still see them decently well from the bar.

"You're nervous," Itachi whispered into her ear from behind her. "I can tell. You'd better relax or _he'll _be able to tell, too." She turned around to look up at him. He had one eyebrow raised patronizingly. "You know, this impacts me too, Sakura. If you don't make it convincing…"

"I got it, thanks." she hissed quietly. "You don't have to be so condescending." Itachi gave her another look, this one telling her to relax. She took a breath. "I just need some help. I'm not exactly some huge seductress."

He nodded understandingly. "We could start by dancing," he suggested in a low voice. Itachi didn't wait for a response as he snaked his hands back down her body, sliding smoothly over the satin fabric. His hands came to rest at her hips, pushing dangerously close to her behind. She took a deep breath in, trying not to get overwhelmed. It had certainly been a while since she'd been touched like this.

Sakura put her arms around his neck, hips starting to sway slowly with the beat of the music. She tried her best not to be self-conscious, but her face was already heating up at the prospect of Sasuke seeing her dance like this. She should've gotten drunk when she'd had the chance.

"Don't be nervous," Itachi told her softly. "You're doing better than you think." She looked up at him, biting her lip self-consciously. Sakura slid her hands up the the back of his neck, pulling him closer. Maybe this was good practice, she thought to herself. It had been a while since she'd even tried to seduce anyone, and she needed to make this convincing anyways, so why not try her best? She looked over to see if Sasuke was watching and was delighted to see his eyes were now trained on them, unblinking.

She took another deep breath, still trying to calm her fraying nerves. More than anything, she was scared of looking stupid; now, not only in front of Sasuke, but Itachi as well, whom she had grown to respect and admire over their past few encounters. For whatever reason, he made her feel… safe? It seemed like he knew everything, could foresee every possible outcome, and for that, she was thankful— he provided her with some stability in this crazy, whirlwind situation they had found themselves in. Above all, he was here to support her—but wouldn't it be fun if she could seduce this stoic, respectable man, even just a little bit?

Sakura revelled at the thought of affecting Itachi at all— with this, she began swaying her hips in larger, figure eight movements underneath his hands. She felt his hands tighten on her only a fraction, but tighten nonetheless. Looking up at him, she flushed again as he smiled at her, desperately hoping she wasn't making a fool of herself.

_Calm down, calm down… Remember what Ino always says… "Forehead, you've always been twice as hot as you think you are." _Even if Ino had meant this as an jab at the time, strangely enough, the thought of her and her friend's banter helped relax her nerves. Sakura desperately hoped Ino's advice was right. It wouldn't help the situation at all if she still had any reservations—she was in far too deep to back out by any degree at this point.

With this, Sakura let herself go bit by bit as she started to feel the music, so loud she could feel it vibrating within her chest. Continuing to sway her hips, she closed her eyes, and let her abdomen press flush against Itachi's. At this, his hands slid down a few centimetres, coming _very_ close to gripping her ass. As if having some reservations about this however, a moment later, Itachi's hands changed their minds and raked upwards to rest at her lower back. She tried not to let herself be affected by this, but _oh my god_ if even that small movement on his behalf hadn't sent a shiver up her spine.

She reached up, tightening her arms around his neck—and consequently pressing her chest up against his— under the pretext of leaning in to him, and telling him how much she loved this song, still swaying her hips to the beat. Itachi chuckled, and replied "I don't know it,". Regardless, this action had sent his hands creeping up, then down her back, and her body was now much closer to his.

Now, all her hesitations were gone—all she could think about was how to make him touch her more.

_Seems like he still has some reservations, _Sakura thought wickedly. _Let's see how quickly I can escalate things! _She let her pelvis grind against him, trying desperately to shimmy his hands down to touch her backside. Being pressed so closely against him, she could feel him taking a deep breath, and his hands tightened again on her lower back. Maybe her actions were having a greater impact on Itachi than she'd thought.

With heels on, she was tall enough to lace her arms around his neck, and run her fingers through his hair, resting on the back of his neck. Suddenly, Itachi ran his palms down her spine, resting at the bottom of her ass, gripping tightly. This sudden action set her nerve endings on fire, and she accidentally let out a breathy moan. She flushed a little with embarrassment at this, but didn't let it faze her as she hoped the music was too loud for him to hear it.

Quickly, his head bent forward, and his lips were now all too close to her ear. His breath tickled her earlobe as he spoke.

"Did you like that, Sakura?" he said darkly, loud enough for her to pick up what he said. At this, her face turned a deep red as she realized he must have heard her moan, quiet that it was. "Do you like it when I touch your ass like this?" His hands gave a firm squeezed to her buttocks, extracting another gasp. She was almost mortified— then again, it felt so good being touched like this, she couldn't quite bring herself to care.

"Don't be shy," he breathed in her ear. Sakura nodded, and she could hear him chuckle slightly. _Oh god, what kind of monster have I unleashed? _she thought to herself, at the same time revelling in the reaction she had extracted from this dark, aloof man.

As the current song ended and changed to a more upbeat tune, suddenly Sakura was no longer facing Itachi as he spun her around, hips pressed flush against her backside. His arms weaved around her, hands resting firmly on her hips, pressing her hard against him. Instead of feeling embarrassed— the room had filled up substantially since they first arrived so nobody on the dance floor was paying them any mind— she revelled at the unexpected touch. Sakura's arms reached behind her, holding his neck as she swung her hips back and forth, grinding against him.

She couldn't believe how severely this physical contact with Itachi was affecting her; her skin felt like it was on fire, desperately wanting to be touched more to soothe the heat that was quickly pooling in her lower abdomen. She wanted more, and more— and was quickly getting overwhelmed by how harshly her body was reacting to his touch. _Oh my god, oh my god…_ Earlier, she had regretted not getting drunk beforehand, but now Sakura realized she already felt dizzy without the booze.

They had barely been in the club twenty minutes and already she was shamelessly grinding against Itachi. _Oh god, Sak, Ino's going to kill you… _

Somehow, in the moment, she couldn't quite bring herself to care.

Itachi's hands began to move, exploring the expanse of her flat tummy, all while pressing her hard onto him. She gasped as he moved dangerously close to her panty line, hoping he wouldn't cross it while they were in public, but oh-so _desperately _hoping he would. The thought of those wicked hands, touching her in her most intimate places…

The thought was too much for her, and she snapped out of it as Itachi raked his nails up her sides, following the curves of her body, and effectively inducing yet another shiver up her spine.

She let her body melt into his completely, swaying in sync with the beat of the music, blissfully unaware of the razor sharp glare she was getting from across the room. As the song ended, Sakura felt herself getting released from his hold, and turned herself around, still gripping his neck and moving along with the beat of the next song. He looked at her darkly, but she could see a glint of mischief dance across his gaze. "Don't look now, but I don't think my otouto is too pleased with us," he told her with a slight smirk.

Sakura startled, just now realizing the thought of Sasuke hadn't crossed her mind once over the past few songs, clearly having been preoccupied. She let her eyes wander across the room, and was shocked she didn't feel his raging aura earlier. Sasuke was effectively brooding from across the room, and she could feel his anger permeating through the air, directed right at her.

"Maybe we should go outside for a bit," Itachi suggested, still smirking, clearly revelling in making his brother mad. "I don't think Sasuke-_chan_ can take much more." Sakura agreed readily and they made towards the door.

In the fresh air, away from the sultry atmosphere of the club, Sakura suddenly felt extremely self-conscious around this man, having ground on him not two minutes prior. "Let's take a walk," he suggested, and Sakura agreed readily. Hopefully this wouldn't be awkward, she prayed, and thankfully Itachi's passive attitude dismissed any uncomfortableness between them.

"I don't think my otouto will be too happy with me," he explained. "Maybe it's for the best we leave for a bit. Any more, and I'm sure he would've started a fight with Naruto or something." Sakura blushed at the thought of what "more" meant, but quickly dismissed it and gave a small giggle at his second comment. Itachi pulled out a cigarette and lit it as they walked.

By now, it was already late and Sakura didn't particularly want to be trapped in that intoxicating environment again, where her judgement was clearly getting a little bit compromised. "I think I'll just go home, actually," she told him. "I don't want to test Sasuke's tolerance too much tonight." He grunted in agreement, cigarette flapping in his mouth. They steered towards her apartment, as it wasn't even a question as to whether or not Itachi would walk her home. They both knew he was far too old-fashioned for him not to.

As they walked back in comfortable silence, Itachi exhaling puffs of smoke, they both thought their own thoughts quietly. Nearing her house, Itachi broke the quiet. "I got a little carried away tonight," he offered. "I guess I got a bit excited." She shook her head, indicating that she didn't mind (_definitely_ didn't mind). Sakura didn't really feel like pondering why he had reacted the way he had tonight, instead letting herself revel in the fact that she had gotten the great and stoic Uchiha Itachi "excited" at all. She realized they had effectively switched roles, Sakura suddenly being reduced to silence whilst Itachi was carrying the conversation.

"In any case, I'm sure I'll see you soon, unless something happens with my dear brother," he said with a smirk. They came to a stop in front of her house. To her shock, he began moving towards her, perhaps to hug her (?), before cupping her face between his hands. His eyes met hers, relishing in the moment for a split second before leaning down, quietly but firmly pressing his lips to hers. Her eyes fluttered closed automatically, trying to savour the tenderness, but the kiss was over before it began. Her heart pounded violently in her chest as her body struggled with how to respond. Sakura could only stare at him in complete and utter shock, watching his eyes dart to a spot behind her. As soon as she felt Sasuke's presence watching from afar, Itachi gave her one final smug look before stalking off.

Watching him walk farther and farther into the distance, she could not help the hopeless sinking feeling in her chest as the taste of tobacco lingered on her lips.


End file.
